The Promise of a Lifetime
by Tachibana Natsu
Summary: -One Shot- "All living things die someday Captain. It's unavoidable. But as long as you remember, it'll live in your heart forever. But, I won't die until I acomplish my dream, and see you acomplish yours. You can cry all you like Luffy... I'm right here, you don't have to be alone. You have your crew, you have me." (Picture not mine)


_**Title: The Promise of a Lifetime**_

_**Characters: Zoro, Luffy, mentions of Ace**_

_**Genre: Tragedy/Hurt/Comfort/Friendship/Angst/(Romance if you want to read it that way)**_

_**Song: Promise of a Lifetime by Kutless**_

_**Warning: Zoro and Luffy are both a little OOC-ish**_

* * *

_/I have fallen/_

_/t__o my knees/_

_/as I sing a lullaby of pain/_

_/I__'m feeling broken in my melody/_

_/as I sing to help the tears go away/_

_/Then I remember the pledge you made to me.../_

Zoro was on watch duty, the sea around them was calm, the night was quiet, and Zoro was almost asleep when a quiet shuffling caught his attention. The Straw Hats' firstmate peered over the side of the crows nest to see a dark shape leaving the cabins, the green-haired man reconized said shape after a few seconds of studying it as it shuffled across the deck towards the front of the ship.

_Luffy... _Zoro thought, his eyes narrowing. Something was wrong with his captain, Luffy was never that quiet. With a quiet grunt, Zoro stood to follow his captain.

_/I know you're always there/_

_/To hear my every prayer inside/_

_/I'm clinging to the Promise of a Lifetime/_

_/I hear the words you say/_

_/To never walk away from me/_

_/and leave behind/_

_/The Promise of a Lifetime.../_

* * *

_/Will you help me f__all apart/_

_/Pick me up, take me in your arms/_

_/Find my way back f__rom the storm/_

_/And you show me how to grow through the change/_

Zoro found Luffy leaning against on of the railings, watching the sea splash quietly against the Thousand Sunny. His captain looked at him as he approched, then went back to watching the inky black water. Zoro didn'y say a word, he just walked over and relaxed, leaning against the railing beside the younger man. They stood in silence for what seemed like hours, but was really only a couple minutes.

"I don't wan't anyone else to die..." Luffy whispered suddenly, taking his green-haired swordsman by surprise.

"Luffy, I won't die." Zoro said sencerely, looking at his captain. Luffy's slumped frame stiffened as soon as the last words left his firstmate's mouth. The raven-haired young man's head snapped up, his eyes blazing with fury, but there were tears gathering in the corner of his eyes. The captain's dark eyes narrowed,

"Never say that! Don't make promises you can't keep!" Luffy snapped, Zoro stepped away in shock and confusion. That's when the dam burst; the tears that had been previously threatening to fall, did so and Luffy let out a broken sob, "Ace said the same thing." The 19-year-old whispered, causing Zoro to draw in a sharp breath as Luffy continued, "He told me he'd never die! He _promised_." Luffy's voice dropped again,

_/I still remember the pledge you made to me.../_

"Ace broke his promise." Luffy choked out. Zoro didn't really think twice, he just acted on impulse, and he pulled the younger male into a hug, letting his captain cry on his shoulder. "I don't want anyone else to die!" Luffy sobbed.

"All living things die someday Captain." Zoro said quietly. "It's unavoidable. But as long as you remember, it'll live in your heart forever. But, I won't die until I acomplish my dream, and see you acomplish yours." Luffy's sobbing got louder as he said those words. "You can cry all you like Luffy... I'm right here, you don't have to be alone. You have your crew, you have me."

_/I know you're always there/_

_/To hear my every prayer inside/_

_/I'm clinging to the Promise of a Lifetime/_

_/I hear the words you say/_

_/To never walk away from me/_

_/and leave behind/_

_/The Promise of a Lifetime.../_

"You shouldn't hide these things from us." Zoro whispered as Luffy's tears slowed, "You can't just keep these bottled up inside." Luffy hiccupped as Zoro spoke to him in a soft, caring voice.

_/I am holding on to the hope I have inside/_

_/With you I will stay, through every day/_

_/Putting my understanding aside/_

Luffy's crying stopped all together after one final shuddering breath.

"Thank you, Zoro..." Luffy muttered, pulling away. "I needed that."

_/I am comforted.../_

Zoro smiled fondly, ruffling his captain's hair, "Those you care about will never fully leave you, you know. They're always with you."

_/To know you're always there/_

_/To hear my every prayer inside/_

_/I'm clinging to, the Promise of a Lifetime/_

"Will the pain ever stop?" Luffy asked suddenly. Zoro sighed and looked across the ocean,

"No." His gaze went back to his captain and he smiled a small smile, "It'll always hurt. Maybe it'll lessen with time, but the pain will never fully go away." Luffy stared at his best friend and firstmate, "When someone close to you dies, you're left with a gaping hole in your heart, but you need to fill that hole with other important people."

_/I hear the words you say/_

_/To never walk away from me/_

_/And leave behind, a Promise of a Lifetime/_

**_"Listen up, Luffy! I'm not going to die, and don't you forget it!"_**

**_"I swear, I will live a life without regret!"_**

**_"Someday I promise I'll set sail! And I'll live however I want! Freer then anyone!"_**

Zoro looked at his captain, who stared back, determination blazing in his dark eyes.

"I'm going to live a life without regret." Luffy stated strongly, "I'll live however I want!" A grin broke through on Zoro's face as his captain continued, "I will become the Pirate King!"

_/I know you're always there/_

_/To hear my every prayer inside/_

_/I'm clinging to the Promise of a Lifetime/_

_/Looking back at me/_

_/I know that you can see my heart is open to the Promise of a Lifetime/_

* * *

**Tah-Dah! The plot bunnies attacked me today, so I had to write this. :D Hope you liked it!**


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